Eria Reveals Strategies for Integrating AI in Business

In the business world, acquiring licenses for artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, or Copilot is often seen as a step towards modernization. However, for AI to truly integrate into a company's daily practices, simply purchasing these tools is not enough. Teams must be trained, reassured, and involved in identifying concrete use cases. This is emphasized by the agency Eria in its white paper published on June 3.

In many companies, the scenario is recurring: management invests in AI licenses, declares that AI is now strategic, and hopes that teams will spontaneously adopt these tools. However, without adequate support, most employees remain skeptical or anxious, not clearly understanding what is expected of them. As a result, six months later, the tool is present, but the expected transformation has not occurred. According to Tifany Clemenceau, co-founder of Eria in 2025 with Melvin Duveau, this is primarily a problem of disseminating AI culture internally.

The Importance of Providing Suitable AI Tools

The question often arises as to why one should give their team access to AI tools when many are available for free. Yet, even companies that think they can wait before diving in are already facing "shadow AI." This phenomenon describes employees using tools like ChatGPT with company data, without official validation or clear rules, posing significant risks, particularly regarding data privacy. According to a study by the Boston Consulting Group, more than half of employees use alternative tools when the company does not provide a suitable solution.

It is therefore essential to pay attention to tools and offer them. But as mentioned, this is not enough. "The real challenge today is to successfully transform the work habits of an entire company," summarizes Tifany Clemenceau. It is about creating an environment where employees understand why they are using AI, in what cases it can concretely help them, and, most importantly, how to integrate it naturally into their daily lives.

The Challenge of AI Integration

A management team that says, "you all have Gemini now, use AI," without training or time allocated for experimentation, does not work, observes the expert. There is a gap between discovering a tool with curiosity and permanently changing one's way of working. Teams are rarely supported on crucial questions: what are we allowed to share? Which tools should we use? What gains is the company really seeking? How can we avoid mistakes? Where does automation begin, and where does it end? In the absence of a clear framework, employees move forward alone, with a number of misunderstandings and frustrations.

The Initiative Must Come from the Ground Up

Eria's white paper, "AI Era," draws on the experience of ten French scale-ups that have achieved over 80% AI adoption, including Qonto, Doctolib, PayFit, and Malt. It emerges that relevant use cases arise from the ground up, not from executives. Companies that succeed in transformation are those that allow employees to experiment and share their discoveries. Formats to encourage AI adoption include a weekly AI café, internal demonstrations, and workshops. These initiatives aim to create an environment where the use of AI becomes natural and collective.

The goal is not to turn all employees into prompting experts, but rather to create what Tifany Clemenceau calls "a fertile ground for discussion," where the use of AI gradually becomes normal, visible, and collective. It is worth noting that "Conducting a training day is a good start. But believing that the company is transformed afterward is false," emphasizes Tifany Clemenceau. The uses and tools of artificial intelligence are constantly evolving. A cultural transformation as profound as this never works in a "one shot": it requires genuine commitment over the long term.

Addressing AI-Related Concerns

Eria's report also highlights the importance of addressing employees' concerns regarding AI. Resistance often stems from a lack of understanding of the company's objectives. Companies must clearly explain why they are deploying AI and how it concretely helps teams. The most advanced companies communicate their vision transparently, showing concretely what AI can improve in daily work. This helps to dispel fears and encourage broader adoption.

A Gradual Approach

Specifically, the Eria agency advocates for a very gradual approach: first laying the foundations (an AI vision, governance, data security requirements), then creating an initial collective trigger before disseminating uses over time. This can be done through internal "AI champions," that is, employees who are already convinced, often pedagogical, who help their colleagues gradually adopt the tools. At the same time, it is necessary to identify more technical profiles, referred to as "builders," responsible for designing the AI assistants used by the rest of the teams. Tifany Clemenceau aims to reassure: "We will never have 100% of employees creating AI agents, and that is not necessary. But it is important that everyone understands how an AI agent works to adopt it in their daily lives."

AI as a Factor of Attractiveness

Finally, the adoption of AI has become an expectation among employees, influencing the employer brand and the attractiveness of the company. "They want their company to help them upskill in AI, as it becomes a real factor of employability," she emphasizes. Employees come to us saying: "my company is not training me, and I am afraid of being left behind." The issue thus goes far beyond mere productivity. It touches on the employer brand, attractiveness, and talent retention of a firm. As usages spread, employees also evaluate their company on its ability to prepare them for new working methods. Those that ignore the subject take a double risk: losing efficiency today and becoming less attractive tomorrow.